Power for 8 hours; industry angry

Industrialists of the Millennium City are up in arms against the state government’s move to supply only eight hours of power to industrial units. They have accused the government of “singling them out as soft targets”.

Industrialists of the Millennium City are up in arms against the state government’s move to supply only eight hours of power to industrial units. They have accused the government of “singling them out as soft targets”.

The Dakshin Haryana Bijli Vitran Nigam (DHBVN) on Wednesday announced the new “power regulatory measures” for industrial feeders.

According to the new rules, industrial units will get power supply from 8am to 12noon and from 2.30 pm to 6.30 pm.

DHBVN superintending engineer Sanjeev Chopra said that the new arrangement would continue till the monsoon arrives.

Manoj Tyagi of Industrial Model Township (IMT), Manesar said that the DHBVN’s move has put hundreds of industrialists in a fix who are now compelled to spend more on power back-ups.

“We are perceived to be a fraternity that would manage everything on its own without complaining. We are being victimised because we don’t protest,” said Amina Shervani, Manesar Industries Welfare Association (MIWA).

This announcement by the discom is a move to provide more power to the residential and agriculture sectors.

A few days ago, residents of the city had protested against long power cuts by blocking the expressway besides manhandling officials and damaging power sub-station offices.

DHBVN has been facing the wrath of Gurgaon residents who have been facing outages upto 20 hours.

Udyog Vihar, the hub of around 1,200 medium and small-scale industries is finding it hard to cope with the situation.

“We are willing to pay more but there should be a long-term solution,” said Himanshu Vaish of Udyog Vihar chambers of commerce. Several industrial units at Udyog Vihar have shut down due to power crisis claimed some industrial bodies.